Roommates
by dodger-chan
Summary: At long last, completed.
1. chapter 1

Well, this is a little different, but at least one thing remains the same; Fushigi Yuugi is still not mine. If only that would change.

Taka didn't have to worry about his family getting in the way as he tried to settle into his new dorm room. They'd been a pain last year, but now he was a sophomore and they were more used to him being away. When he'd tried to move into a dorm last year, everything had been a mess with so many little siblings running around. And his girlfriend. This year, Miaka would be here with him, so he'd get to see her more often. Plus the money he saved on gas could be put to better use, such as buying Miaka hot dogs or desserts. He thought about hunting her down but decided to wait. As a freshman, her family would be going nuts trying to "help" her unpack and getting used to the idea that she wouldn't be home every afternoon. His father had been the same.

Taka smiled thinking of his father. So very much like the man he vaguely remembered from the book, yet also so different. His father had never been sick a day in his life. His father was so proud of him, even if he was a bit confused at why his boy wanted to double major in pre-law and mathematics (what else for a tax lawyer?). He had never quite understood the obsession with money. He had even been willing to get his son an off-campus apartment that year. But Taka had said he'd liked the dorms. And that they were much cheaper. The only issue with dorms was roommates. 

Last year he'd roomed with Genrou. Tasuki. Now that had been an experience. He laughed to himself at memories he knew he'd found disturbing at the time. Hopefully his new roommate wouldn't be that bad.  Or at least less likely to spiral into the pit of alcoholism. He knew it would be a freshman, hopefully one who respected the status that came with being older.

"Holy shit." Taka turned to see the people who had entered the room. One was a woman in her late forties. She appeared slightly nervous. It was the boy who had spoken. Not a boy, rather a young man who looked very like a boy, with his shaggy bangs falling in his eyes. Taka looked at the freshman from the ground up, from shoes to jeans to sweatshirt to face. The face told him why new roommate had cursed. His new roommate was Suboshi.

"What's the matter?" The woman was anxious, as any freshman's mother would be, but her nerves seemed different from what Taka remembered his mother's were like. She seemed more worried about the situation than about her son. But from what Taka knew of her son, he couldn't blame her. He stared blankly at Suboshi, who quickly turned away to face the woman.

"Nothing's the matter, Aunt Rennie. It's just kinda final now, isn't it?" The woman sighed slightly. 

"Yes it is. But are you sure you don't want me to stay for a while? Help you settle?" Suboshi turned back to Taka with the slightest fear in his eyes.

"I'm sure." He said. Then, under his breath added, "I'm so very sure."

The woman was obviously relieved. "Okay, just don't forget-"

"_Goodbye_ Aunt Rennie." The woman left. Suboshi sighed and absently brushed the bangs out of his eyes. "Ho-ly shit."

Taka glared across the room at his old enemy. He looked so much the same. Except for his eyes. They didn't have the anger he remembered. They had been frightened momentarily but now they we dull, lethargic. They didn't fit with Suboshi. Taka supposed it could have been Amiboshi, but the eyes didn't fit him either. And something about the way he'd spoken convinced Taka beyond any real doubt. 

"We can't room together." Taka spoke slowly, trying to master his feelings. He was talking to a murderer. "I'll talk to the RA. Tell him-"

"That we can't room together because I slaughtered you family and tried to rape your girlfriend and kill you?" His tone was infuriatingly sarcastic. He dropped the bags he was carrying and scratched at his left wrist. Taka reminded himself that _this_ boy in _this_ life hadn't done anything. "You're right, though. We can't room together."

Taka took a deep breath. "If we wait a couple of weeks, we may be able to come up with some excuse."

"If we can last a couple of weeks." Taka nodded slightly. This was not the best way to start the school year, but it wouldn't last. It couldn't last. 

The door opened suddenly and a guy Taka knew from last year leaned in.

"Hey Taka, how's it going? See you've met your new roommate." He turned and smiled at the freshman. "I'm Todd, the RA on this floor. My room's down the hall, if you have any problems. But in your place, I'd talk to your roommate first. Taka's a great guy; he'll be just like a big brother. Anyway, the annual pre-fall-semester party is tomorrow night and I'll expect to see you both there. Bye for now, kiddies."

The RA ducked out of the room. Taka could hear him greet the people next door. In his own room, time froze for a brief instant. Then, very slowly, Suboshi sat on the floor where he'd been standing. He leaned against the bed and began to cry. Softly at first, but the whimpering gradually became violent sobs. He scratched harshly and rapidly at his arm. Taka felt a trace of sympathy for the boy on the floor. He was reminded of his own little brother. His little brother that this boy had killed. Taka turned his back on the sobbing child.

"Stop crying." 

"Shut the fuck up." The voice was shaking and his breath ragged. "You'll never be like him. Never. Never. Never."

Taka grabbed one of his textbooks and sat down on his bed to read. The dry history didn't quite drown out the one word, half-sobbed half-muttered, repeated over and over. 

"Never."

I wouldn't mind any ideas on how to continue this one. Or if I should. And as Renfield says, "The reviews are the life," so please review or I'll have to start feeding him spiders again. Yuck.


	2. chapter 2

Yes, it's short. But I had an evil physics project. Sigh. 

Taka slept late and slept badly, his dreams echoing with the cries of children. By the time he woke up, Suboshi had left. He let out a quick breath of relief. Hopefully all mornings would work out this well. The bed was made; everything had been put away. Actually, Taka considered, if the freshman weren't Suboshi he might have made a good roommate. Gone most of the time and neat, he fit the top two qualifications. Taka thought about going to see Miaka. She'd have a lot to do today: eating breakfast, getting a schedule, having a snack, finding her classes, eating lunch. Taka laughed aloud. The student union would be the best place to find her, if he wanted to show her around before she had to eat again.

Taka was feeling tired and happy when he returned to his room that evening. Tired from running all over campus; happy because that's how Miaka always made him feel. He nearly forgot to dread returning to his roommate lost in the faint euphoria of her love. Maybe he could tell Todd that Suboshi had hit on him; that might get him a new roommate. Or a lecture on tolerance. As he approached his room, he noticed a strange sound. The sweet, mournful notes of a flute hovered uncertainly outside the door. Taka opened the door and stood in the doorway, watching his roommate. With his eyes closed and the flute at his lips, he would have thought it was Amiboshi. Suboshi finished the song, opened his eyes, and nearly jumped out of his skin.

"You play well." Taka didn't have to make an effort to be nice; he had genuinely been impressed with the music. "I didn't know you played."

"I took lessons when I was younger, but I never was any good." Taka watched Suboshi hurriedly dismantle the flute and return it to its case. He searched for something to say.

"You must really love it."Suboshi jerked his head up to look at Taka, his eyes wide with pain.

"I hate it. The sound of a flute makes me feel physically ill." Taka stared at him.

"Then why do you play it?" His mouth twisted into a cruel mockery of a smile.

"Because I love it. Why else?" He tucked the case under his bed. Hesitantly, he added, "You've heard me play before."

"Have I?" Taka hadn't wanted to think about it, but he knew he had. He had heard the flute play another sad song the day he'd opened the door to his house to find nothing more than battered flesh and spilled blood. The memory made his stomach turn. That sick, cruel, evil little boy… Taka glared as Suboshi pulled his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them, his right pointer finger scratching absently at his left arm. 

"You have." Suboshi lowered his eyes until they could focus on a spot just in front of Taka's left shoe. "Aren't you going to the party? The one the RA mentioned?"

"I wasn't." Taka sat down at his desk, proclaiming the room his. He watched Suboshi rise and walk to the door. 

"Then…I guess I should." He placed his left hand on the doorknob, his right clamped so tightly around the left wrist that both hands had lost all color. Taking a quick breath, he left the room, leaving Taka to his peace. 


	3. chapter 3

This is taking a long time. Sorry.

Taka felt a little bad about driving Suboshi out of the room. A college party would be the worst place for someone whose greatest social skill was not randomly slaughtering people. Well, one of the worst places. Plus he had bitten his own nose to spite his face; Taka had wanted to go to the party. Now he was stuck in his room until Suboshi came back or lost it and killed someone. The thought upset Taka. He would hate for one of his friends to get hurt because he had wanted to make a point about the room being his. He'd even feel bad if it was just some innocent freshman. It wasn't his fault, of course. He hadn't been the one to inflict Suboshi on the world. No, he'd just sent him out of the room. Into a hall filled with innocent people. 

Filled with. Taka remembered just how many people had been at the party last year. If he went, he'd probably not see his roommate at all. With so many people, they would have no problem missing each other, especially if they were trying to do so. Taka stepped from his room into the party certain he could avoid Suboshi. And if anything happened he could…do…something. Taka stopped suddenly, letting the guy behind him walk right into him. He ignored the angry looks as he wondered just what he could do.

For the first time in this life, Taka wondered how he had killed someone. He vaguely remembered that he had, but not how. Would he still be able to kill Suboshi if anything happened? Another question worried him even more. Would he be able psychologically to take another human life? Involuntarily he pictured the boy playing the flute in his room. He didn't think so. But then the boy's eyes opened and his face was splashed with drying blood. And Taka thought he could kill him. 

Taka drifted through the sea of people, talking to a few old friends and making some new ones. He was thoroughly enjoying himself when he caught sight of his roommate sitting in the corner. He was about to sneak off when he saw that the boy wasn't alone. He was glaring up at an older student, possibly a sophomore but more likely a junior by Taka's estimation. They were obviously not getting along. Taka felt a rush of worry return as he tried to figure out just what he really could do if Suboshi lost it. How much of his Seishi power was still his? How much had Suboshi maintained? Taka sighed realizing all he could do was try to separate them before any slaughtering occurred. Allowing his anger with Suboshi to show, he approached them and roughly laid his hand on Suboshi's shoulder.

"Hey Freshman! You left a mess in _my_ room. Clean it up." Suboshi had started at the contact and then stared at Taka in shock. The open-mouthed, wide-eyed look of incomprehension lasted only a minute. He took off so fast Taka was almost certain he was back in their room before he'd had a chance to turn to the other student. Taka rolled his eyes. "Freshmen."

The older student's face also reflected a vaguely confused look. But traces of amusement filled his eyes and an irritatingly familiar smile twisted his lips. "Freshmen indeed."

Taka studied the other student, wondering if they had had a class together and if he'd be expected to remember a name. Whoever he was, he did not mind being studied. He was himself studying Taka with a bit more interest.

"You could come back to my room if you want to see more." It took Taka several seconds to understand the offer.

"Oh! No. It's just that you look familiar." Taka stammered out his response.

"Where have I heard that before?" Taka felt himself blushing and looked away.

"I have a girlfriend." He blurted. The other student laughed.

"Oh Brad, I could show you more than Janet ever could." Taka blinked, confused.

"I'm not Brad." Now it was the other man's turn to sigh and roll his eyes.

"I know who you are, Tamahome. I was only teasing you." With a last look that sent messages Taka didn't want to think about, he slipped away into the mass of partying college kids.

So disturbed was Taka by that look that nearly a full minute passed before he realized what he had been called. Tamahome. Only Miaka had ever called him that in this life. And now this strange and familiar…. Taka suddenly knew who he'd been talking too and the knowledge chilled hid blood. Tomo. He had just saved Tomo from Suboshi. Taka recalled the discomfort of his roommate and another thought struck him. He might have just saved Suboshi from Tomo. 

*******

Brad and Janet are from The Rocky Horror Picture Show. If Tomo were around today, he would definitely be a fan. 

(Tomo prances by singing "Sweet Transvestite)

 See! 

Please review, the reviews are the life.


	4. chapter 4

Sorry Meghan

Taka returned to his room confused. The bewilderment was only made worse by Suboshi's pacing around the small room. He stopped almost as soon as Taka entered and the two of them stared at each other briefly before Suboshi spoke.

"Thanks, Taka. It is Taka here, isn't it?" His words were rushed and nervous. Taka nodded. "I'm called Shun here, by the way. It was nice of you. I mean I know you wouldn't have done it if you'd known what you were doing, but it was still nice so thanks."

Taka shrugged, automatically dismissing any thanks. Standing in front of him with all the nervous energy of a wild rabbit watching for hawks, Shun didn't seem at all like Suboshi. He reminded himself just what he was speaking too before asking, in a tone harsher than even he'd intended:

"What did Tomo want with you?" The severity of the tone didn't seem to affect Shun at all. He smiled. The slightly wistful smile sent a chill down Taka's spine. 

"The same as everyone else. My head on a pike. My still-beating heart ripped out. All the skin peeled away from my flesh and the wounds bathed in salt water. You understand."

"Completely." The smile dwindled. Shun sat down on his bed and withdrew back into Suboshi's dull expression. Taka almost sighed. Shun would probably have made a better roommate than Suboshi.

"Thanks anyway." The words were barely whispered. Without realizing why, Taka found himself prolonging the conversation.

"Who are Brad and Janet?" Shun blinked, puzzled.

"I don't know any Brad. Aniki dated a Janet, once." His voice caught slightly. "I didn't like her. She was a slut like—Janet Weiss. Do you mean Brad and Janet from The Rocky Horror Picture Show?"

"I don't know. When I was talking to Tomo, he called me Brad and Miaka Janet." Shun considered the concept.

"I suppose it might work. You as Brad, the Suzaku no Miko as Janet. If you replace 'had sex with' from the movie with the 'almost had sex with' of real life that would make Tomo Dr. Frank N. Furter. I don't think I'd make a good Rocky though. Big, strong, blond; he'd have to be Nakago." Completely lost, Taka broke in:

"What are you talking about?" Shun stopped, slightly taken aback.

"The Rocky Horror Picture Show. It's where Brad and Janet come from. Haven't you ever seen it?"

"No." Shun shook his head, disappointed.   
            "You really need to. It's a good movie, though a bit on the strange side. They show it on TV at least every Halloween. They show it at real theatres some places, but only the obsessive fans go there. Either wait for it on cable or rent it. What's so funny?"

Taka was laughing softly. He found something absurd about listening to Suboshi telling him what movies to see. It was just so different.

"You're not him anymore, are you?" Shun's face blanked.

"Oh, I'm still him. Rather, I'm still me." Shun reached under his bed for a bag that he then tossed to Taka. Taka caught it and looked through its contests. Prescriptions of unpronounceable names. "They just found ways to control me."

"What's this?" Suboshi smiled wanly. 

"The anti-psycho-twin-drug-cocktail. Didn't you know they had one of those?" He pulled out one of the bottles and held it up. "These are the only ones I actually take. They give them to schizophrenics. That's what the doctors think I am. Is that what I was, do you think?"

Taka started to answer but Shun interrupted him. "I'm sorry. You were trying to be nice and I had to get defensive. I'll play the good roommate until we can get out of this."


	5. chapter 5

Sorry it's been so long. Exams (a whole f(&%ing  month of exams) and such took up time and sapped inspiration. I hope this is still good. Please do review, but read it first.

The first semester went well. None of Taka's classes seemed overly difficult and he could see Miaka everyday. Tomo was around but he wasn't bothering anybody. And his roommate, well, Shun wasn't turning out too bad as a roommate. He just was almost never in the room. Taka had actually spent an entire day at the dorm when one of his classes was canceled and he'd only seen Shun leaving in the morning and coming back after ten. Taka did feel a little guilty about keeping the freshman out; he couldn't convince himself that Suboshi would have enough of a social life to keep him outside for ten hours straight. Even Shun, as different as the shy kid was from the killer, had the kind of creepy aura that left him somewhat isolated in any crowd. At first, Taka had thought it was just that he couldn't help but think of Shun as Suboshi, but other people who had nothing to do with Suzaku had commented on it. Shun was just weird to everyone. But no one had been beaten to death with yo-yos and Miaka hadn't been harassed, so Taka had never felt the need to do anything. Being left alone by Suboshi wasn't so bad. 

Coming back into his dorm just before lunch, Taka could tell something had changed. Something was clearly wrong. The room was always messy; it was inhabited by two not-quite-adult males and could be little else. A frenzied clutter had replaced the typical lazy sloppiness. As Taka stood inside the room, shocked with the subtle differences, he heard the sound. A soft, muffled crying. Kneeling on the floor Taka found Suboshi curled up under the bed, whimpering. 

"Shun," he whispered, "what's the matter?"

"Nothing matters. Nothing. You're not even here. I thought I saw him and I think I'm seeing you. But it's all nothing. Nothing at all." Shun's voice came out shaky and tired. The tone was dull, but his voice caught on the word "him."

"Get out here, Shun." The sound of tears stopped. Slowly, Suboshi inched out from under the bed. Taka was surprised at the figure. His eyes were red and watery and the only act he seemed capable of was the repeated scratching at his left arm, which had started bleeding. Taka pulled Suboshi's arm, separating it from the scratching fingers. The deepest scratches formed a pattern of letters. The word "please." Seeing the tears that had silently started falling again, Taka felt real pity for Suboshi. 

"Is it you?" Taka nodded. "It doesn't matter, though. I still couldn't have seen him. He can't be here."

"Why can't he be here?" There wasn't any need to ask who "he" was. Suboshi's voice had a special inflection just for Amiboshi.  Though his reaction was not at all what Taka would have expected from seeing his elder brother, it was still the only possible "he."

"We can't both be here."

"Why not? Don't you want to see him?" Suboshi looked at him as though he had asked if Suboshi wanted to breath.

"You remember me from back then, right? What I did to you? Imagine being related to that. Could you stand to live with that?" Suboshi jerked his arm back and resumed idly scratching the wounds. "I'm not good for him. I hurt him. He can't be here."

"That doesn't necessarily mean you've lost it." Taka murmured half to himself. He wondered just where Tomo had been this morning. If anyone could and would, it was Tomo.


	6. chapter 6

It seems to be changing from where I thought it was going. Hope it works out okay. The chapter's a little longer this time, mostly due to dialogue. Tomo comes back into it.

Tomo wasn't actually too hard to track down, even without knowing his real name. Even on a college campus, there weren't too many people like Tomo. And Taka really didn't care if people thought he was a bit on the weird side himself, looking for Tomo, so the search was pretty quick. The hard part was in approaching Tomo. 

When he found Tomo, at an off-campus dive that he'd never been to before and was certain he'd never go to again, Tomo wasn't alone. He was with someone, a young man with short, sandy brown hair and muscles that can only come from regular weight training. Not someone Taka wanted to just interrupt. Instead he waited. Waited while they sat down, while they got drinks. Waited until the other man left. Moving quickly so as not to lose his nerve, he sat down directly across from Tomo. 

"I thought that was you cowering in the corner, Tama-chan." Tomo's smile was pleasant, though it didn't match his eyes. The eyes weren't malicious, as Taka had expected; they were irritated with the unwelcome intrusion. 

"Don't call me that." Taka snapped. Tomo shrugged. 

"Would you prefer Brad? In any case, if you've finally decided to fall head-over-heels in love with me, you're too late. Get lost, asshole."

"Be polite and listen to me--"

"You're the one interrupting my date and you lecture me on manners." Tomo hissed. 

"Is everything okay here?" The man Tomo'd been sitting with had returned to the table and he was standing right over Taka. Tomo smiled up at him, his eyes as active as his lips. Taka was surprised to see so genuine and pleasant an emotion coming from Tomo. 

"Everything's fine." Tomo looked back at Taka and dropped the smile. "Brad was just leaving, weren't you?"

"Not quite yet." Taka didn't want to piss off Tomo's boyfriend, but he wanted even less to have to start another conversation with Tomo-the-homo. The boyfriend sighed.

"Listen, Brad-"

"My name's Taka."

"-that doesn't matter. This is not your date. You are leaving now."

"No." He took a step towards Taka, but Tomo caught his arm.

"Don't make a fuss. Sit down. I'm sure he'll leave as soon as he gets what he wanted, right?" Taka nodded.

"Of course." Tomo's smile slid easily to his lips but his eyes showed the strain.

"And since you're so keen on formalities…Taka, this is Jake. Jake, Taka. Shake hands and pretend to be friends." They shook, but the pretense was lacking. "Now what do you want?"

"Truthful answers to two questions."

"And then you're gone?"

"Like I was never here."

"Deal."

"First, why do you call me Brad?"

"Because you're the physical manifestation of a perfect asshole. Second?"

"What did you do to my roommate?" Tomo blinked in obvious surprise.

"Nothing." Taka shook his head. "Now that we're done-"

"I don't believe you." Tomo shrugged.

"You asked for the truthful answers, not believable ones."

"He's seeing things." Tomo bit his lip and leaned forward.

"He's crazy," he whispered. Forcibly, Tomo relaxed and turned to Jake. "Sorry, Hon. I think this conversation's going to need a bit more time. And privacy."

"Secrets again." Jake's voice was regretful, and Tomo's smile was weak as he broke eye contact. Taka felt a slight twinge of guilt as Jake left the table. Tomo glared at him.

"If you screw him up for me, Tamahome…"

"I'm not the one keeping secrets. Hardly the best foundation for a relationship, secrets and lies. Just like always."

"People change. And what do you know about 'always?'"

"I know what you're doing now."

"I was trying to go on a simple date."

"You're giving Shun hallucinations. "

"He's crazy. Always has been."

"And you were the one talking about change."

"Why do you care about him, anyway? You certainly didn't dump your Miko for him." Taka ignored the snide remark.

"He's different than I remembered. He seems so scared and alone, I feel bad for him." Tomo snorted.

"Scared and alone is exactly how I remember him. He hasn't changed at all. The only difference is now he can't blame you for the loss of his aniki. It's only a matter of time; he can't survive without his brother."

"Than stop making it worse."

"I'm not. Listen, he killed me. It's over. I'm never going to love him for it, but nothings going to change it and I'm better off now. Driving a lunatic crazy is not something I want to do."

"Did he ever see things that weren't there? In the book, I mean." Tomo shook his head.

"No. He felt things that happened to his brother, but he never saw anything. At least not in my memory."

Taka stood to leave. If it wasn't Tomo, which he still wasn't sure about, and it wasn't Suboshi's insanity, then Amiboshi was around. Well, Miaka would be pleased; she'd always liked the older twin. As for his roommate, who knew? Shun wasn't entirely irrational, he didn't think. Taka turned suddenly as Tomo called him back.

"Tama, if Amiboshi's here, I can help you find him. Then, when they see each other, it won't be so random." He handed Taka a napkin with his number on it. "Call me tomorrow afternoon. We'll look for him."

"Thanks…Chuin." Taka read the name off the napkin. Tomo shrugged, watching Jake walk back over. 

"Being alone and scared sucks." He turned back to Taka and smiled. "Do you want to know something ironic? I'm deathly allergic to shellfish. Me of all people."


	7. chapter 7

I know it was a long pause again, but for some odd reason people keep expecting me to do things that aren't on the computer. 

When Taka returned to his dorm, the room had been cleaned up. The only indications of what had been were a slight redness around Shun's eyes and a bandage covering his left arm. Shun himself sat calmly on his bed, intent on a book. He didn't jump when Taka entered the room. He didn't even look up from the page. Instead he merely whispered the question:

"Were you here earlier?"

"Yes." Taka kept his voice low, cautious. He didn't want to start his roommate up again. Shun sighed.

"Oh. I'm sorry." Shun closed the book but otherwise didn't move, continuing to stare at the cover as though still reading the story. "You'll be rid of me pretty soon, at any rate. I called my aunt and she'll get me in a couple of days."

"Really?" Taka thought about asking why but he knew that would sound ridiculous. He'd seen why. Shun nodded and reopened his book. Taka turned away to get ready for bed. 

"Thank you." Taka turned back at the sound of Shun's voice. "You've been very kind to me here. Kinder than I thought possible. So thank you."

"I don't think you were seeing things. I think your brother is here." Taka wasn't quite sure why but he didn't want Shun to leave thinking he was hallucinating. Shun was crazy enough without anything else. Rather than cheer Shun up, the idea that his older brother was around seemed to upset him.

"All the more reason to leave, then." Shun started to work one of his fingers under the bandage on his arm, but noticed what he was doing and stopped. Reading the book seemed more an issue of keeping his body and his mind occupied.

"Don't you want to see him? Even once?"

"No." Shun responded without looking up. Taka jerked the book away from Shun. 

"Why?" Suboshi had killed his own ally to protect his brother. Taka couldn't understand why Shun wouldn't want to see him. Shun chewed his lower lip, thinking, before he began his explanation.

"I…I scare him. I never wanted to scare him. I never want him to be scared. But he's scared of me…. So I have to leave him alone. I can't see him again. Even once. When we were little, of course, we were very close. Not…unhealthily, though. Just…unusually close. But then we started remembering things. And feeling things. Little things. I'd get in a fight and he'd come home with bruises. One time, he cut school to go to the beach. I nearly drowned in the middle of English. That was the worst, I think. I couldn't tell how much was what was happening to him then and how much was what had happened…back then, I mean. It freaked him out. And why wouldn't it? It was like he could never get away from me. I couldn't escape him either, but I didn't mind as much. He didn't want anything to do with me. Once he realized he didn't really have a choice…he ran away. I went to stay with my aunt so he could come back. I haven't….haven't seen him since then. My dad and my aunt keep in touch. They know where we are. They just don't understand…that he can't see me. I'm just not good for him. Can I have my book back?" Shun's change of tone was so quick Taka almost missed the question. He glanced down at the book. Death in Venice and other stories. He handed the book over, too tired to deal with a roommate tonight.

******

"Death in Venice" is the ultimate Suboshi short story in that it's about obsession and how it destroys a person. Definitely something to read when you have a spare hour and a half.__


	8. chapter 8

Okay, it has been quite awhile, but I swear I haven't forgotten this story. I have been, for the past few weeks, without a computer. But now I have one, and classes are the only thing in the way of writing. Classes and a short attention span, so if you want me not to forget this story, send reviews so I remember I'm writing something.

Taka waited until eleven forty-eight to call. He had found himself unable to sleep at the ungodly hour of ten. True, classes started before then, but classes always were ungodly. He had dragged out everything he had to do this morning to postpone making the phone call. A call he didn't really want to make, even though he felt in an awful hurry to make it. So at eleven forty-five, Taka had taken the number and his cell phone to a bench outside of the library and commenced staring at them. It took him three minutes to dial. 

"Hello." The sleepy voice on the other end sounded a little different, but who can tell how a voice will sound with cell phones. 

"Chuin…" Taka began, hesitatingly. 

"He's in the shower. Can he call you back?"

"Sure." Taka gave the unknown voice his number.

"And who shall I say called?" The voice mocked the tone of an efficient answering service. 

"Brad." Taka hung up the phone. He watched the few students who headed into the library. He thought about going in for something to read, but decided to wait. It took ten minutes for the call to come.

"Hello?"

"I was unaware that I knew anyone who was actually named Brad." Tomo's smirk was audible over the line.

"I wasn't sure you'd remember Taka." There was a pause on the other end of the line. 

"I didn't. But I remember what we discussed. Where are you?"

"Right outside the library."

"The campus library?"

"Yes."

"Can we meet you at the Student Union for lunch, then?"

"Who's we?" Taka demanded. "I don't want to get all your Seiryuu friends involved in this."

"There never were any Seiryuu friends. _We_ would be Jake and myself. He's got to bring me back to campus anyway and he wanted to go to lunch. Another person never hurts when you're looking for someone." Tomo was starting to sound testy.

"Okay, I'll meet you there. Half an hour?"

"Fine." Tomo hung up. Taka began working hard at killing thirty minutes.

Finding the couple in the Student Union was easy; Tomo had never quite mastered the art of being inconspicuous. Even conversation wasn't overly difficult once the awkward beginnings were past. Taka and Tomo shared a common goal and with less effort than he thought, Taka was able to discuss his roommate and his ideas for finding Amiboshi. The hitch in their conversation came not from Taka, but from Miaka.

"Taka! I've been looking…." She didn't finish her sentence. Miaka stared straight at Tomo, shocked and vaguely angry.

"Uh…Miaka, this is Chuin and Jake. Guys, this is Miaka, my girlfriend." Taka introduced them haltingly. 

"Nice to meet you." Jake's tone put a chill in the normally polite words. Taka glared at Jake wondering what reason _he_ had to dislike Miaka before realizing Jake had just reacted to her attitude. She was creating the tension. Taka had never expected Miaka to bring anything but ease and comfort to a situation. Of course, he had never introduced her to Tomo before. 

"We've already met," Tomo's response made sense; it explained Miaka's coldness without making her seem overly rude. Since they knew each other, she could, and did, have every legitimate reason to dislike him. Even as Taka admired the cleverness of the lie he had to bite back a laugh when he realized it was the complete truth. "I knew her a lifetime ago."

Jake nodded grimly and shifted his gaze back to Tomo, his eyes steeped in sorrow. Taka felt a little sorry for Tomo. Even as he fought to escape his past, it arose to poison his new love. Perhaps it was only karma, but it just didn't seem right to Taka. The young man sitting across from him wasn't Tomo; he was Chuin. And Chuin deserved some chance for a life aside from Tomo's hell.

"…later, than?" Taka pulled his thoughts back from the daydream and stood with Miaka. She was his blessing: love, compassion and true understanding.

"Later, after your classes, and then later again and again." He drew her to him and felt her warmth in his arms. He breathed across her face, "Wo ai ni."

Miaka glanced back at Tomo, half shrugged and returned her eyes to Taka. "Wo ai ni."

"You didn't tell her." Tomo's tone was completely flat. "With your open and honest relationship, shouldn't you have mentioned why you're eating lunch with me?"

"She trusts me. If I tell her now, she'll want to help find Amiboshi. I'll tell her when Shun's seen his brother. It only seems fair that he gets to before Miaka does."

"So it's not really lying if you're going to tell her later?"

"It's still a lie, but I trust her to understand why I didn't tell her at first." Taka glanced over at Jake, left out of the loop and clearly displeased about it. Tomo followed Taka's eyes and shrugged.

"Very well. Then in the spirit of honesty, I ought to just give you this." Tomo tossed a folded piece of paper at Taka. "I ran into him a few days ago myself. I think he just started this semester. He didn't want to talk to me, for some reason, but this is the rehearsal room he uses for flute practice. I don't know when he'll be there, but I bet he wants to talk to you."

"Thanks." Taka knew it would only waste time to ask why Tomo hadn't simply given him the information last night, or even over the phone this morning. At least he had given it. "Oh, Jake, your boyfriend may be a bastard, but he's not crazy."

Tomo glared at Taka's smiling face. Now when Jake demanded an explanation, hopefully Tomo would tell the whole truth. And hopefully Jake could accept it. Taka waved a cheerful goodbye and set off to find Amiboshi.


	9. chapter 9

Oh yeah, I was writing a story, wasn't I? I'd write faster, but unlike all the characters in the story, I have these things called 'classes.' Incidentally, there is a disclaimer in chapter 1, but for those of you who missed it:

I do not own Fushigi Yuugi. I could say that I owned Jake, but Tomo would probably kill me. If Suboshi is ever for sale, please let me know. I'd like to own him. And now: the story.

Taka sat in the common room, not staring at the door to his dorm. Staring at the door would not provide him with any clues as to what was going on inside. He knew it wouldn't be right for him to be in the room, but basic politeness couldn't totally subjugate his curiosity. Amiboshi, now Kai, hadn't wanted to come. He wasn't at all pleased at the idea of seeing his little brother. Just as Shun said, he was afraid. And now that Taka had finally persuaded Amiboshi – Kai – to come up for a visit, he was worried about how their visit was proceeding. Clearly it couldn't be going too badly; they'd been alone in the room together for...Taka checked his watch…one minute and thirty-six seconds. Determined to let the twins have some time together undisturbed, he picked up the book he had to read for English.

_She is Beloved and she is mine._

What if Kai's fear was reasonable? Not that he was quite sure just what Kai was scared of, or even if Kai himself knew. But Shun was Suboshi and Suboshi was insane and somewhat obsessive regarding his brother. Taka had never seen the two of them interact; for all her knew, Suboshi could torture his big brother for fun. But he wasn't hearing any screams of pain and they had been in there for … two minutes and ten seconds. Taka flipped back a few pages in the book, looking for where he left off.

_…she cried because she had no self._

Shun wasn't Suboshi. At least not the Suboshi he had known. Still crazy, but medicated and aware that his mind didn't work quite the same way as everyone else's. Shun wasn't really all that bad. Not someone he's set up with his little sister, true, but someone who didn't deserve it as bad as he had it. Kai didn't either, though. Kai deserved it even less than Shun. He really hoped he had done the right thing in convincing Kai. Well, no one had died in the first… three minutes and fourteen seconds. He was going to do his homework.

_There is a loneliness that cannot be rocked._

He had chosen the wrong book. 

Resigned, Taka put down his English homework and proceeded to count the seconds on his watch.

At 273 seconds Jake walked in. Taka had expected Tomo to come by himself to see what was going on, but he supposed sending Jake made sense. Neither Kai nor Shun would react well to seeing Tomo. Jake could provide information without freaking anybody out too much. At 360 seconds, Jake spoke.

"What isn't Chuin telling me?" Taka lost count of the seconds. 

"What?"

"How do you know him? Why does your girlfriend hate him? And why would I think he's crazy?" It took Taka a minute to figure out what Jake was talking about. Tomo still wasn't owning up to being Tomo. Jake did deserve to know, but Taka knew he probably wasn't the best person to tell him. 

"You shouldn't hear it from me."

"Then who should I hear it from? Chuin's not going to tell me." Jake rested his head on his hands. "I only want to know him better."

"He thinks that if you do, you won't like him anymore."

"He should know me better than that."

"But you don't know him better than that." Taka tried to figure out just how to explain it. "When Miaka and I knew him, he…wasn't exactly a good person."

"Tell me something I don't know." Jake snorted. "He was a prick when I met him, too."

"It goes a bit beyond that. The things he did, which I'll leave for him to tell you, weren't bad things; they were evil. If Chuin were the same person I knew, I could never forgive him."

"Evil?" Taka could tell Jake didn't quite feel the full weight of the word. 

"Truly evil." Taka nodded. "If you knew that you had been wholly and unrepentantly evil, would you want to tell anyone? Especially someone you wanted to like you?"

Jake was starting to reply when Kai left the dorm. He seemed of a mind to just leave quickly and silently, but then thought better of it. As if very focused on an idea, he approached Taka.

"It was very nice to see you again, Taka?" The name came out half-questioned. 

"You too, Kai. Um…how did it…uh…?" Taka didn't know how to finish the sentence. Kai studied the floor.

"Fine. Well, I gotta get going. Hope I see you again, soon. Miaka, too." As Kai left, Taka was amused to note that a slightly uncomfortable Kai had mannerisms strikingly similar to a slightly uncomfortable Shun. He couldn't have told the two of them apart.

"Is that the guy you were asking Chuin about?" Jake asked. Taka nodded.

"That was him. Meaning I should check on my roommate. Just … give Chuin some time. He'll tell you." Taka left Jake in the common room.

The book Taka's reading is _Beloved by Toni Morrison. The quotes are all in there, somewhere. It's kind of a creepy book, but it does make one think of Fushigi Yuugi. In any case, review!_


	10. chapter 10

It continues. 

Taka didn't see at first that Shun was crying. His roommate wasn't curled up in a corner sobbing, or peeling the flesh from his bones. He was sitting on his bed, smiling slightly as the tears simply fell. But Taka missed the tears at first glance.

"So, how is he?" Taka asked, inadvertently adding Shun's special accent on the word 'his.' Shun shrugged.

"He's fine." Shun's tone was utterly flat. No accent, no additional tension in his voice indicated that he was speaking of his brother. Taka noticed the tears.

"What happened?" Taka sat down on the bed next to Shun.

"I'll never see him again." Shun's voice didn't tremble; it remained flat, as though he was talking about some other 'he' than his twin.

"What makes you say that?"

"He said goodbye to me." Shun's left hand absently ran across his lips and his smile deepened slightly. "Kaika doesn't have a little brother."

Taka could only gape in confusion. Kai – not Kaika – did have a little brother. It was Shun. And a farewell certainly shouldn't make Shun happy. Well, obviously Shun wasn't exactly happy, but something had made him smile. It couldn't be the departure of his twin, the one thing he had seemed to care about while they roomed together. Shun wiped the tears from his face, but fresh ones followed quickly. Taka tried to give him a comforting pat on his shoulder.

"Stop that!" The emotionless tone was replaced by Suboshi's cold anger. "Why do you keep doing things like that? Are you mocking me?"

"What….what are you talking about?" Taka pulled away in shock. Suboshi leaned closer to him, the force of the hate nearly knocking Taka over. 

"I hate you. You took him from me. You took him from me and dangled him in my face like he was some carrot. A tool you could use to mock me. You're a bastard."

"Shun…I didn't mean…I thought he'd want to see you. I wasn't…mocking you." Taka was scared. This was the Suboshi he remembered: violent, unreasonable and insane. Suboshi pulled back slightly. 

"You really meant to be nice to me?" His words were hesitant.

"Yes."

"It doesn't change anything! Letting him tell me that he doesn't like me sure as hell doesn't make up for taking him away from me. I hate you." Suboshi's voice wasn't quite as certain as it had been before. It shook slightly as he leaned closer. Taka pushed himself as far back as he could. He felt claustrophobic in the presence of such overwhelming hate. The distance between them closed until, for the briefest of instants, Shun kissed him. Almost as soon as it started, Shun threw himself off the bed and stood in the center of the room. Glaring at Taka, he repeated himself before fleeing the room. "I hate you!"

He didn't sound very sure.

Yes, that actually is in character and it will be explained. Sorry it's so short.


	11. chapter 11

Sorry this is taking so long. Yami no Matsuei seems to have taken over my life. For those of you who are wondering, yes I do have a plan and yes the story is almost finished. Unless, of course, no one reviews, then I just won't finish it at all. 

Tomo:  That's not much of a threat.

dodger-chan: Shut up Tomo.

Shun didn't come back while Taka was awake, nor was he there the next morning. Taka felt no guilt at being relieved. Suboshi, Shun, whoever was scary. In the lifetime since he had last been kissed by a guy, the experience had gotten no less creepy. He missed Miaka at breakfast, almost went to the wrong class and nearly fainted when Tomo tapped him on the shoulder.

"Well?" The former Seiryu seishi seemed eagerly awaiting something, but Taka couldn't for the life of him figure out what.

"What?" Taka sighed. Lately, he kept having to ask that question.

"The twins. Are they friends again?" Tomo watched him curiously. "With that expression, I'm likely to assume you caught them in some act of incest."

"Incest?" Miaka was right. All the Seiryu seishi are perverts. "You mean they-"

"No. At least I don't think so." Tomo quickly amended his statement. "You just seem to be in shock, and seeing that might have put you there."

"Shun kissed me."

"What?" At last, the shoe was on the other foot.

"Last night, after Kai left. He called me a bastard, said he hated me, then he kissed me." Tomo started laughing and Taka glared at him. "This isn't funny."

"Oh, but it is, Yui-sama!" With effort, Tomo stopped giggling. "So Amiboshi wanted nothing to do with him?"

"Well, Shun said they were never going to see each other again. But he didn't seem devastated. He was sad, but also pleased in some way."

"Basking in the glow of newfound love?" Tomo suggested.

"Shut up."

"I was being serious. How much do you know about Suboshi's infatuation with the Seiryu no Miko?" Tomo asked. Taka shrugged. He wasn't particularly close to Yui, and Miaka hadn't told him anything about Yui and Suboshi. "Well, when Amiboshi 'died' she was kind to Suboshi. She told him to cry and she sympathized with him. She was never kind to him again. She cared for him the way you'd care for shit scraped off the bottom of you shoe. But for the rest of his life he was her loyal dog. Following her, adoring her, willing to do anything for her because one time she made him feel that he was not alone. Do you see a moral in this story?"

"Shun falls in love with people who are nice to him."

"And he stays in love with them even when they aren't. Congratulations, you now have your very own pet lunatic." The words sounded like a joke, but Tomo's tone was all serious. "But there is a bright side."

"What? I can have him kill people I don't like?" 

"I hadn't thought of that, you really could. No, I meant that at least he doesn't expect anything from you."

"What do you mean?" In Taka's mind, kissing him had implied certain expectations.

"He knows you're not going to love him. The very fact that you keep being nice to him is probably too confusing for him to understand. He expects you to have contempt for him."

"Still? I mean, he's lived another life."

"You never quite get over who you were." Tomo sighed.

"You should tell him. Jake, I mean. He does deserve to know." 

"Shut up, Taka."

"If you really want him to love you-"

"I'm asking him to love who I am. That's hard enough without asking him to love who I was too."

"You just said you don't get over who you were."

"And I was a deceitful guy, basing everything about himself on illusions. None of us has changed all that much. I'm weaker, not nicer."

"Another life, different experiences. You are different." Taka tried to smile at Tomo like a friend. He didn't quite succeed. "Neither of you are who I remember."

"Only because you never knew either of us."


	12. chapter 12

See, I did not forget this story. Again, I apologize for letting it sit so long. 

Taka was hardly surprised to see his room half-empty. Nearly all of Shun's things were gone. Shun was folding his sheets, the last things left of his. He jumped a bit when Taka entered the room.

"Oh! Um…hi." Shun turned back to his sheets, blushing. "I hoped I'd be done before you got back."

"You're aunt's here, then?" Taka tried to ignore the fact that he seemed to terrify his roommate. Former roommate. 

"Yeah. She's out by the car. She sent me up to get the last of it." Shun put the folded sheets down on the mattress and smoothed out the wrinkles with his hands. "I'm sorry."

In Taka's life, whenever someone had said, "I'm sorry," the appropriate response was always along the lines of, "No big deal," or, "It's okay." Neither of those quite fit for what Shun was apologizing for. Taka had no idea how to respond, so he stood there, silently watching Shun. There was a small wrinkle in one corner of the sheet that he was obsessed with getting out. His hands ran over that one spot over and over. Taka could vaguely hear Todd lecturing some kid about losing his key. In the uncomfortable silence of the room, it sounded louder, as though Todd were dragging the poor kid to their door. Both he and Shun were shocked when it was their door that opened, revealing a nervous Kai and an irate R.A. 

"I'm really sorry, but with packing it's so confusing. Kai, you have my key, don't you?" Kai addressed his twin. Shun nodded dumbly, having no trouble responding to his brother's name. "It was really great of you to help me pack."

"Anytime." Shun half-gasped the word. He took the key from the desk and handed it to Todd. "This is the last of the stuff, so we won't need this anymore."

"Nope, your brother's got to turn that in at the office downstairs." Todd refused the key. 

"I'll do that." Kai smiled. Todd looked at each twin, an expression of confusion on his face. He seemed to have a vague idea that something was wrong between those two, but he couldn't be sure. He shrugged and left the room. Taka, too, shifted his eyes from one to the other. They both seemed more than a little apprehensive. Of course there was only one thing for him to do. 

"Well, since you've got your key up here, I'll head downstairs and make sure your aunt has no trouble getting in." Taka was out the door before either could protest. He didn't think they would have; they needed their time alone.

It wasn't too long before an impatient woman who looked slightly familiar was stalking around the outside of the building. Taka put on his best dealing-with-a-parent expression and approached her.

"Are you Shun's aunt?"

"Did something happen? Where is he?" Impatient and nervous, she jumped down Taka's throat.

"Nothing happened. They were folding sheets, so I thought I'd come down and get you." Taka tried to smile reassuringly. The woman calmed at first, then nearly attacked him again.

"They?"

"Shun and Kai-" She didn't let Taka finish.

"You left Kai alone with him?" Taka stared at her. Granted she had to be Kai's aunt too, but Shun was the one she was coming to get. 

"Why shouldn't I? They've never had any problems together before." It wasn't exactly the truth, but it wasn't quite a lie either. As far as he knew, the only problem that came up after Kai's first visit was his own. Shun's aunt paled.

"Before…oh dear. No wonder he was so upset." She stared hard into Taka's eyes. "You're his roommate, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"Shun says good things about you. I'm glad you could be nice to him. It isn't easy sometimes." Taka nodded. The woman had no idea. "You seem like a good person. I guess you really couldn't have known, but Shun isn't good for Kai."

"Well, you said it, and Shun said it. I've never heard Kai say that, though." 

"Kai doesn't know any better. He loves his brother."

"There's some reason he shouldn't?" The woman was beginning to irritate him. If everyone in Shun's family was like her it was no wonder his roommate was insane.

"Of course he should! Listen, I don't have to defend our family's policies to you! Just take me upstairs so I can take Shun home."

"I'm sorry. Of course you don't." Taka proceeded to lead her to their room in the longest way possible. Kai came to see Shun; they should have some time together.


	13. chapter 13

Okay this really has taken forever. Sorry. I could go off on a long tangent, blaming classes, Yuki, Yami no Matsuei fics, etc., but it would be mostly lies. Sometimes, my attention span just wanders. Please forgive me and continue to read.

"…I'm sure everything's okay in there." Taka raised his voice slightly to give some warning to the twins before he opened the door, letting their aunt in.

Shun was finishing folding the sheets, though crumpling them might have been a better word. Kai sat on the other side of the room on Taka's bed. 

"Hey, Aunt Rennie!" Kai chirped, his smile near impossibly bright. Taka thought he sounded just a bit out of breath.

"Are you okay?" The woman went over to Taka's side of the room and began grilling her nephew on his well-being. Taka stared after her in surprise. Shouldn't Shun be the one she was worried about?  Shun was still trying to fold the last sheet.

"Do you want some help with that?" Taka found himself asking his former roommate. Shun just stared back at him, blankly. Taka took the ball of cloth from the now still hands and opened it back up. 

"Oh, thanks." Shun eyed his twin without turning his head. He didn't look at Taka. Feeling a little embarrassed and out of place Taka watched the sheet he was folding. Hadn't Shun already folded it before Kai arrived? 

Kai laughed.

Kai laughed and the sheet fell at Taka's feet. He was still holding two corners, but a tangled mess was now hanging from his hands, tapping irregularly against his legs. Shun had turned, stilled, and just stared at his relatives as they talked.

"Shun?" His former roommate jumped.

"Sorry. I just…" Shun's voice trailed off. He shrugged and gathered the sheet. "It's fine. You don't have-"

"Just help me fold it." Taka sighed. This time the two of them were very careful with the sheet, gravely following the ritualistic dance of folding linen. Flip. Slide. Step close. Drop. Grab. Step back. Again.

Step close.

"Thank you." Shun's breath was hot in Taka's face and he couldn't help shuddering.

Step back.

"For what?"

"For everything." Step close. "For being nice."

Step back. 

"I'm just a nice guy. It wasn't anything."

Step close. The sheet was folded, a smooth, perfect rectangle. Shun tucked it under his arm.

"It was everything."

Step back. 

Lacking in mundane activity to occupy himself, Shun leaned against his old bed and watched the woman and the boy on the other side of the room talking. Taka could merely observe the outside of some family conflict and feel extraneous. He considered leaving, but remembered they were in his room. 

"I thought she was coming up here to take you home." Taka indicated Shun's aunt. Shun smiled and continued to regard his brother.

"They haven't seen each other in awhile. Since I moved in with my Aunt Rennie, actually. Kai was always her favorite."

"So why didn't he move in with her?" It was none of his business, Taka knew, but he asked. That he asked surprised him, as did the accusation in his tone.

"Our father wanted his son to live at home. His oldest son." Shun didn't sound upset or jealous. He was simply relating facts. "I don't know if it's usual for twins, but in our family each parent sort of picked one of us. Kai was our father's favorite; I was our mother's. Very appropriate, in a way."

"Why?"

"Because she was crazy, like I am. It's one of the many possibilities I've been given for why I'm me; all the extra time under her influence."

"Oh." Taka couldn't think of anything to say. 

"Are you ready to go, then?" Shun's aunt stood by the door, impatient. Kai still sat on Taka's bed. 

"Yeah, Aunt Rennie. I'm ready." Shun walked towards the door.

"Hey, Shun." Taka spoke before he had an idea of what he was going to say. Shun froze in place. "Do…uh…do you have an email address or something? I can keep you up on what's going on up here."

"Email? Right, I've got one." Shun scrambled for paper and pencil. "Concerts. I want you to tell me about every concert."

"No problem." Taka smiled. He guessed Shun meant flute concerts, either for music forums or in private with friends. Maybe Kai would let him record some of the music. He had a mike on his computer. Shun handed Taka the paper and left with his aunt. 

"Can I…?" Kai started to ask. Taka handed him the paper. Kai pushed up his sleeves and copied the address over partially healed scrapes on his left arm.

So ends the actual story part. There is still an epilogue I'm working on and a short little side story to explain Kai and Shun's family background. I will finish this. Promise. 

Remember, more pestering in the form of reviews means I finish faster. 


	14. epilogue

Yay! This is it. The epilogue. Enjoy. 

For more of the twins see the side story "Mother"

***********************************************************************

"Ta-kaaaaa!" Miaka called out to him, waving ecstatically as he carried his lunch over to her table. "I just had the most interesting conversation after class today."

"Really?" Taka smiled at her beaming face across the table. She was a wonderful girl, and worth all it cost to feed her. She hadn't been at all mad when he told her about Kai. Well, the tiniest bit at first, before he'd explained. She had been far more concerned that he'd been rooming with Suboshi for nearly a semester and a half. 

"Yeah. Remember that guy who was eating lunch with you and Tomo?"

"Jake? Tomo's boyfriend." Chuin's boyfriend actually.

"Uh, yep, that was his name. But he's not Tomo's boyfriend anymore."

"What?" Taka paled. Chuin must have told him about the book and Jake must have freaked. Not that he really blamed him. Still, Taka couldn't help but feel slightly guilty. He had encouraged Chuin to tell Jake everything in the first place. 

"He said that Tomo dumped him. Well, he called him Chuin, but it's the same thing."

"When did you see him, anyway?"

"He's one of the T.A.s for my C-Language course." Miaka had finished her lunch and was now picking at Taka's. "I told him he was better off dumped."

"Miaka, did you tell him why?" Taka hoped not.

"You mean why he's better off without that pervert? Of course."

"Do you know where I can find him?" Taka stood. Miaka blinked up at him questioningly.

"He should still be on duty. Computer Science Building, room 202."

"Uh, look, I'll meet you back here soon. I'm gonna go talk to him." Miaka simply nodded. Taka leant down and kissed her forehead. "Love you."

"Love you, too." She was confused, but she trusted him. Taka always did the right thing, just as Tamahome had.

"Jake." Taka leaned in the door, letting his breath catch up to him.

"Brad, was it?" Jake looked up from the computer screen. 

"Taka."

"Sorry. I'm not very good with names." Jake returned his attention to the monitor.

"Not a big deal. My girlfriend said she was here earlier."

"Hyper girl? Brown hair? Fourth stomach?"

"That's her."

"She was here." Jake continued typing, answering Taka in a half-hearted manner. 

"She said she told you. About Chuin, what he was like."

"Was she lying?" Taka thought he heard a faint note of hope.

"No. But she didn't tell you everything. We really…" Taka paused to order his thoughts. "Neither of us actually knew him, except as an enemy in war. There was more to him then she told you. I'm not exactly sure, but I think that's who Chuin is. The rest of Tomo."

"I told you I wasn't good with names." Jake sighed. "I did ask him to explain it. This mysterious play he was cast in, where I was only part of the audience. He said he wanted me to hate him for who he was, not who he'd been."

"Do you hate him?"

"No."

"Talk to him, then. Tell him you know-"

"Taka," Jake interrupted. "He was right about part of it, though. I can't date someone like that. I may not hate him, but things can't be the same."

"I'm sorry." Taka turned to leave the room. He knew Jake was right. A man is only the sum of his experiences. And Chuin had Tomo's experiences, regardless of deserving them. Taka felt sorry for him. For Jake as well. The past dragged innocents down as well. Taka barely caught Jake's soft words as he left the computer lab.

"So am I."

******************

Just because it's finished does not mean you don't need to review.


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